(Elmont) Mathew Barzal played the hero in the second overtime and the New York Islanders defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 on Saturday afternoon.
After a first overtime period to the advantage of the Hurricanes, the Islanders quickly worked with the puck at the back of the territory. Robert Bortuzzo inherited the disc at the point and his shot was deflected by Barzal into the back of the net.
Patrick Roy’s squad can live for another day, as they narrowed the gap to 3-1 in this Eastern Conference first round series. The fifth clash will take place Tuesday evening in North Carolina.
Barzal had also threaded the needle earlier in the match, scoring his first goal of the series. Jean-Gabriel Pageau also hit the mark for the Islanders.
Roy had trusted Ilya Sorokin to start the third game, but Semyon Varlamov took over. Varlamov was chosen as the starting goalie for the fourth duel and he gave up twice in 44 shots.
Seth Jarvis and Stefan Noesen found the back of the net on the power play for the Hurricanes. Frederik Andersen blocked 32 shots to suffer his first loss since April 4.
The Hurricanes entered the game with the firm intention of returning home and enjoying several days of rest before starting the second round. Jarvis gave them a reason to believe in the first period, during a power play.
Following a point shot from Burns, the puck remained in the middle of a group of players in front of the net. Ryan Pulock tried to clear in front of the net, but the disc hit Jake Guentzel’s skate before landing on the blade of Jarvis’ stick, which hit the target.
It took a while for the Islanders to find their rhythm again, but they responded halfway in the second period. Barzal waltzed into the enemy zone and applied the brakes in front of Brady Skjei before firing a shot that slipped past Andersen.
The New Yorkers finished the period well and started the final third well, as they took the lead on a power play. Noah Dobson took a shot that was easily repelled by Andersen, but the return came straight to Pageau, who quickly beat the Hurricanes goalie.
The visitors, however, played the same trick on their opponents, with 5:52 remaining. Teuvo Teravainen showed great patience and made a pass in front of the net to Noesen, who redirected the puck well behind Varlamov.